What Is Zentsu? Attending Every Show on a Tour: The Real Cost and the Case for Not Going to All of Them
Zentsu 全通 · Full attendance
You look over the tour dates and catch yourself counting up your schedule: “I wish I could go to all of them.” Here’s what zentsu means, how the meaning of “all” differs by fandom sphere, and how to estimate costs and plan without overreaching.
What Zentsu Means
Zentsu (全通) means attending (going to) every show or date of a tour or event. It is short for “going to all of them.”
Related terms are plentiful, too.
| Term | Meaning |
|---|---|
| Hantsu | Attending about half of the shows |
| “Only ○○ show” | Selective attendance, such as only the hometown show or only the final show (senshuraku) |
| Zen-ochi | Losing the lottery for every show (the tragic opposite of zentsu) |
| Zentsu-zei | The fans who go to every show |
SelectiveEverything
- Only ○○ showHometown or final show only
- HantsuAbout half the shows
- ZentsuEvery show of the tour
Zen-ochi, losing every lottery, is the tragic opposite of zentsu.
Some fandom spheres have their own words. In stage and 2.5D circles (live theater adaptations of anime, manga and games), it’s “zenste” (all stages), and in idol meet-and-greet culture it may be “going into every round.” The same behavior goes by different names.
Origin and History
Zentsu is a genba (live-event) word shortened from “going to every show.” It describes seeing all the dates of a stage play or concert, and whether it also means going to every venue on a tour varies by fandom sphere.
Examples
- “For this tour, I want to do zentsu, ensei (trips to see your oshi) included.”
- “Zentsu is impossible, so I narrowed it to two shows: my hometown and the final.”
- “There are rotating songs, so I envy the zentsu crowd.”
- “Zentsu complete! I was so happy to see a different view at every venue.” (social media post)
- “I settled on hantsu in the end, but every show I could attend was a winner.”
What “All” Covers Differs by Fandom Sphere
The tricky part is that what the “all” in zentsu counts isn’t fixed. When a conversation isn’t clicking, the units usually don’t match.
| Fandom sphere | What “zentsu” tends to cover |
|---|---|
| Concert tours | Every venue and show of the tour |
| Stage and 2.5D | Every stage of the same production (zenste) |
| Meet-and-greets and contact events (sesshoku event) | Going into every round that is held |
| Sports viewing | “All” after limiting the scope, such as every home game |
Even within the same fandom sphere (kaiwai), some people call “I went to every Tokyo show” zentsu, and others only use the word once they’ve covered every venue. What looks like a contest of numbers is often really a question of definition.
Every venue
- All shows of the tour
- Some count only one city
Every stage
- All stages of the production
- Called zenste
Every round
- Enter every round held
- Contact events count too
When a conversation does not click, the units are usually mismatched.
A Rough Sense of What Zentsu Costs (Back-of-the-Envelope)
For example, for a tour of 10 shows in 5 cities across the country:
- Tickets: about ¥10,000 x 10 shows = ¥100,000
- Traveling to 4 cities: transport plus lodging ¥20,000-50,000 per trip x 4 trips = ¥80,000-200,000
- Total: on the scale of ¥180,000-300,000 (roughly $1,200-2,000), plus merch, food and drink
Ten shows, five citiesRoughly ¥180,000-300,000
- TicketsAbout ¥10,000 per show
- Travel¥20,000-50,000 per trip
- ExtrasMerch, food and drink
The estimate is a back-of-the-envelope figure from this article, not a quote.
What makes it possible is oshi savings started before the tour announcement, plus flawless management of paid leave and work shifts. The zentsu crowd are, in fact, excellent project managers.
How to Plan for Zentsu (Practical Guide)
- Make a master table as soon as the dates are announced. List the show dates, venues, lottery-result dates, transport and lodging. This table is the blueprint for your zentsu
- Sort out your routes for securing tickets. Know your official options, such as fan club presales, general sales and official resale (the rule is never to touch unofficial, inflated resale)
- Build in rest days for your body and work. Reserve rest days between consecutive shows first. Zentsu attempts are said to fail more often from poor health than from lack of funds
- Decide a withdrawal line for “if I can’t make a show.” Losing every lottery or a work conflict can happen. Decide at the start that finishing everything isn’t the only kind of success, and your mind feels lighter
- 01Build a master tableDates, venues, results, travel
- 02Sort ticket routesOfficial channels only
- 03Schedule restHealth fails more often than funds
- 04Set a retreat lineFinishing is not the only success
Common Misunderstandings
- The zentsu crowd isn’t necessarily rich. Most make it happen through long-term saving and budget trips
- Zentsu isn’t bragging about numbers. The motive lies in the experience itself: wanting to see every rotating element, or witness the oshi’s growth at every show
Zentsu Is Not a Proof of Love
This matters, so let’s be clear: zentsu is one way of enjoying things, not a unit of love.
- You want to see all the rotating songs and changes in the setlist (setori) → zentsu suits you
- You want to savor a single show with everything you have → selective attendance suits you
- “I have to go to all of them” has started to feel like an obligation → a sign of oshi-katsu fatigue. Resting is also oshi-katsu
Notes From The Oshi Lab: Designing Without Assuming Zentsu
Behind zentsu culture is a design of “a different experience at every show.” Rotating songs, local-flavor MCs, evolving staging: people don’t go to every show for the same thing repeated. This is the essence of repeat-visit measures, and the principle runs through every design that makes people want to come again, from a restaurant’s daily special to per-show bonuses at events.
On the other hand, for organizers, design that doesn’t assume zentsu is just as important. A structure in which the story isn’t complete unless you come to every show leaves fans who can’t feeling shut out. What is healthy is a layered design: “one show is satisfying, and seeing everything goes deeper.” A sense of balance that answers the zentsu crowd’s enthusiasm without leaving selective attendees behind extends the life of the whole fandom.
One more thing the word zentsu brings out is fans’ time budget. Money is what gets talked about, but remaining paid leave, coordination with family and work the next morning often set the real limit. Announcing dates early, not skewing toward weekdays or weekends, and running online options in parallel are measures worth considering as designs that leave room for participation even for people under heavy time constraints. We believe that deciding whom you expect to come, and how far, is a question settled before the attendance numbers.
Related Terms
Ensei / Setori / Genba / Oshi savings
FAQ
What does zentsu mean?
It means attending (going to) every show or date of a tour or event. It's short for "going to all of them," used for visiting every venue on a concert tour or catching every performance of a stage play.
How much does zentsu cost?
It depends on the number of shows and locations, but for a tour that includes regional stops, transportation and lodging add up on top of ticket prices, and totals in the hundreds of thousands of yen are not unusual.
What is the difference between zentsu and zenste?
The meaning is almost the same; it's a difference in the words of different fandom spheres. "Zentsu" tends to be used for concert tours, and "zenste" (all stages) in stage and 2.5D circles.
Am I a half-hearted fan if I don't do zentsu?
Not at all. Zentsu is one way to enjoy things; people who give everything to a single show and people who support through streams are equals. If it starts to feel like an obligation, that's a sign to rest.
